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Gift card payouts are breaking out of the box. Are you ready? You’ve seen what’s possible with loyalty, HR, and customer rewards programs.
Now, we’re seeing the next wave. A surge in demand for gift card payouts in industries you might not expect. And we want our merchants to be the first to know - and the first to grow.
This isn’t about catching up. It’s about leading the way. Let’s explore the new verticals reshaping how payouts drive engagement, loyalty, and value: influencer, gaming and gig economy.
Influencer payouts are evolving. Gift cards are gaining ground.
The influencer economy is evolving very fast and with it, so are influencer expectations about getting paid. No longer satisfied with one-size-fits-all brand deals or delayed payments, today’s influencer economy workers are demanding more flexible, transparent, and rewarding compensation models.
- Diverse payout preferences: 41% are choosing to get paid in gift cards and with 127 million influencers globally, this is a huge potential audience.
- Speed matters: 56% expect instant payouts; delays damage trust and diminish repeat partnerships. This means that people will opt for payout options that they can access immediately, no multi-day processing times or trips to the bank. Gift cards can solve for this.
- Gifting is gold: 90% of influencer marketers are currently running gifting programs to amplify brand awareness and drive sales. Gift cards are a key way to capitalize on this trend. Influencers at all levels, from newcomers to established stars, are increasingly creating gift card wishlists for their fans.
What does this mean for you?
Plug into the gift card boom driving the influencer economy. With Runa, your gift card becomes a built-in reward and payout option across influencer platforms - opening new markets, boosting sales, and amplifying your brand with creators and their fans.
Top influencer platforms are already using Runa to power global payouts, rewards, and gifting for creators everywhere. Take Throne as an example. Throne lets fans send gift cards directly to their favorite influencers. Powered by Runa, Throne drives instant gift card delivery for over 1 million creators worldwide.
“There are 200 million content creators globally, all of them unique. Runa gives us the scale and flexibility that we need to work with all of them.” - Throne
YouPay is another platform unlocking speed, scale, and savings with Runa. Serving 200,000+ creators, YouPay uses Runa to deliver global gift card payouts instantly, securely, 24/7 in real-time. Runa’s platform gets your gift cards into the hands of creators who value choice, speed, and clarity. No delays. No guesswork. Just payouts that perform.
Game on: Real-world rewards are reshaping the player experience - and your gift card can be the win.
Gamers aren’t just playing for points anymore. They’re playing for rewards that offer real-world value they can actually use. Gaming platforms that recognize this are gaining traction, loyalty, and serious ROI. And the best news? They are turning to gift cards to fulfil this demand.
- 75% of gamers are all-in on real-world rewards. Why? Because gift cards and cash turn digital wins into tangible value.
- 65% of gamers say tangible rewards - like gift cards - increase their likelihood of trying a new game. Real incentives raise the stakes, making gameplay feel more meaningful and motivating deeper engagement.
- Developers are increasingly leveraging the power of rewards, including gift cards, to acquire users. In fact, 82% report that rewards-based campaigns are successfully driving players to their games and are planning to boost their investment in these strategies, particularly gift cards, to gain a competitive edge.
What does this mean for you?
In today's gaming economy, real-world rewards are the ultimate power-up. And like gamers, the gig economy workers are ready for more power over how they earn.
With leading gaming platforms already using gift cards from Runa to power up their player rewards, we can enable you to plug directly into this momentum. In gaming platforms, your gift card becomes a powerful acquisition and retention tool - embedded into the games players already love.
Game Optimiser, a platform that enables game developers to embed incentive into their games, saw the ROI of gift cards firsthand. By embedding the Runa API and leveraging the Runa Network for rewards, they unlocked +200% boost in user engagement, +300% revenue growth, and 3x improvement in retention rate.
Gig economy workers are demanding a payment and rewards revolution, and gift cards are stepping up to ignite it.
Today’s independent workers - from ride-share drivers to freelance marketers - make up more than one-third of the U.S. workforce. And yet, the payment experience still feels stuck in the past.
Runa's Decoding Payouts: New Insights on Payments in the Independent Worker Economy report sheds light on the key factors that are top of mind for gig workers when it comes to receiving payments
- For gig workers, speed is paramount: 78% prioritize fast payments when selecting or remaining loyal to a platform. Gift cards, preferred by 26% for their instant, spendable value, directly address the need for immediate compensation often lacking in freelance work. Instant payouts aren't just a perk – they're a core expectation.
- Choice matters: 70% want to choose how they’re paid, including gift cards, digital wallets, and even crypto. More choice means more freedom, helping gig workers reach their goals or simply spend more on themselves with the merchants they love.
- Smart gig economy platforms will actively seek out compelling payout alternatives like gift cards to boost worker retention. The data is clear: offering meaningful perks and rewards keeps workers engaged up to 45% longer. To foster loyalty beyond just earnings, platforms will recognize the power of rewards from favored merchants in making gig workers feel truly valued.
What does this mean for you?
Merchants can meet these needs and grow by becoming part of the payout stack. Branded gift cards offer real value to gig workers, 9 out of 10 of whom are open to receiving rewards as part of their compensation.
Imagine your gift cards instantly reaching more users and this rapidly growing industry. Runa's technology enables your gift cards to be seamlessly integrated as a payout option.
For example, an Uber driver could choose between a standard bank transfer or selecting your gift card, potentially with an added bonus, putting your brand directly in their hands right away.
Merchants no longer have to wait for customers to come to them. With Runa, they show up where spending starts.
Creators, gamers, gig workers, these audiences are earning in entirely new ways, in entirely new spaces. And with Runa, merchants can meet them there.
By embedding gift cards directly into high-engagement payout moments, merchants become part of the transaction, not just the redemption. That means earlier visibility, stronger brand affinity, and higher conversion rates.
Runa transforms traditional gift cards into high-performing acquisition tools. Every payout becomes a new touchpoint. Every link, a new opportunity to drive revenue, repeat spend, and brand loyalty.
Speak to your Partnership Manager to find out more.
